Method of wrapping window packages



' L. FERENCI Sept. 20, I938.

METHOD OF WRAPPING WINDOW PACKAGES Filed June 22, 1954 FIG.|

INVENTOR Patented Sept. 20, 193% ME'riron or was ING WINDOW PACK- GES Lester FerencLBrooklyn, N. Y., assignor to American Machine &Foundry Company, a. corporation of New Jersey Application June 22, 1934, Serial No. 731,825

3 Claims.

This invention relates to an. improvement in machines for and methods of packaging food products such as loaves of bread and the like, and the novel package resulting therefrom.

The main object of this invention isto provide a window in the wrapping material, without impairing the same, through which the contents of the package may be readily inspected. Another object of this invention-is the provision of an improved method of making said window package to give a window effect to a package without the use of special paper. And still anotherobject is to adapt existing wrapping machines to the manufacture of the novel package, according to the'improved method. With these and other objects not specifically mentioned in view, .the invention consists in. certainconstructions-and combinations hereinafter fully described and then specifically set. forthin. the claims hereunto appended.

In the accompanyingdrawingwhich forms a part of this specification and in which like characters of reference indicate the same or like parts:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view showinga loaf of sliced breadwrappedin accordance with the improved method of making a window package; and

Fig. 2 is a diagrammatic .view'showing how the improved method of making a window package is carried out, on a wrapping machine of the general type shown in my co-pending application S. N. 594,101, filed Feb. 19, 1932; now Patent No. 2,082,945, issued June 8, 1937.

In carrying the invention into eifect there is provided a support for a roll of wrapping material, a support for a reel of transparent banding material, means acting to draw webs of banding and wrapping material into superposed relation,

a device for perforating the web of wrapping material before it is assembled with the banding web, a knife for severing the assembled webs between the perforated areas of the web of wrapping material to provide a banded wrapper, and mechanism for wrapping an article in the banded wrapper, whereby the hole of the wrapper is closed by the transparent band to permit inspection of the contents of the package.

In the best practice of the novel method a web of wrapping material is perforated and then assembled with a transparent web of banding material, the assembled webs being severed between the perforated areas of the wrapping web to provide a banded wrapper and an article is wrapped in the banded wrapper so that the hole of the wrapper is closed by the transparent band to permit inspection of the contents of the package. Ihese various means and parts may be widely varied in construction within the scope of the claims, for the particularconstruction, method and package selected to illustrate the inven- 5 tion are merely some of ,many possible concrete embodiments of the same. The invention, therefore, is not to be restricted 'to the specific con- Struction method, and package 7 shown and described.

Referring to Fig. 2 of the drawing, the wrapping material is pulled in the. form of a, web W of .waxed paper or other sealable material by means of a pair of feed rollers 5 from a rollR. The shafts of the feed rollers 5 and the shaft on which roll R is supported are suitably mounted in the machine frame (not shown). Between roll R and feed rollers 5 a web-perforating device is located for punching a hole H in the web W according to the size of the window desired. The web-perforating device consists of a reciprocating punch 6 and a stationary disc 7. Punch 6 is guided by a sleeve 8 andperiodi cally operated through a link 9 and lever ID from the main drive of'the-machine. The feed rollers 5 are intermittently driven by mechanism shown in the above mentioned Patent No. 2,082,945.

A narrow transparent web C also pulled by means of rollers 5 from areel R mounted on a shaft suitably supported in the machine frame is led onto the perforated wrapper web W in such a manner that the transparent web C covers the holes H punched in wrapper web W. Both webs W and C come into intimate contact at the feed rollers 5 which are heated by conventional means (not shown), and the webs are thus united to form a single unit of wrapping material. The latter after being fed over a guide plate II is then automatically cut by means of a knife I2 actuated by mechanism shown in my patent referred to above and coacting with the ledger plate I20, into desired lengths-corresponding with the size of the loaf of bread or other article L to be wrapped. Thereupon the loaf is wrapped in the banded wrapper by mechanism shown in my said patent to which reference may be made for a complete disclosure of the wrapping mechanism.

For wrapping cartons and articles of similar shape the invention may be applied to wrapping mechanisms of the type illustrated in the patent to Langhammer, No. 1,816,085, granted July 28, 1931. For illustrating this application of the invention a portion of the Langhammer wrapping mechanism has been shown diagrammatically in Fig. 2 of the drawing, and-will now be described.

The article L placed on a vertically reciprocating lifter or platform I3 by a conveyor shown in the above mentioned Patent No. 2,082,945 is pushed with the banded wrapper cut from the united webs up through a pair of side fold rollers l4 into a folding pocket formed by the clamping jaws l5 which may be supported from reciproeating bars in the manner shown in the patent to Langham'mer, No. 1,816,085, granted July 28, 1931. Accordingly, the loaf is now enfolded in the banded wrapper with the band disposed between the loaf and wrapper and closing the hole H of the latter. Thereupon the folder plate 16, which is periodically reciprocated by suitable mechanism (not shown), wipes the rear end of the wrapper and band under the loaf, which is held between the jaws l5 as thelifter l3 recedes.

The folding pocket is now advanced over the seal- 1 "ing table II and the folder plate moves with the sealing table while the folding pocket returns to initial position to receive another article. Dur-' ing the advance of the pocket over the sealing table the front jaw I5 may be raised above the loaf by mechanism shown in the Langhami'ner patentlreferred tov above, to clear the loaf on its return movement.

The enfolded loaf may now be advanced fur-' ther on the sealing table and the projecting flaps of the wrapper may be folded in over the ends of the article by mechanism fully shown in said Langhammer patent. a

The contents of the package so formed are visible through the portion of the transparent iband closing the hole of the wrapper. .While the invention has been exemplified in connection with a bread wrapping machine of the general-type shown in my co-pending application referred to above, it may also be applied to bread wrapping machines of the type shown in the patent to H. Y. Armstrong, No. 1,626,379, granted April 26, 1927.

It will be obvious that as a result of the wrapping process above described, the window formed I by the perforating element 6, since this element operates at a fixed distance from the cutting position of the knives l2, will be in a definite predetermined position on the cut wrapper wrapped about the loaf. Thus, the window will have a predetermined relation to the article wrapped, which in the embodiment shown in Figs. 1 and 2, is on top of successive articles wrapped.

What is claimed is:

' 1. The process of wrapping articles in a window wrapper formed from continuous web material which wrapper has the window thereof registered relative to the article to exhibit a predetermined portion of the article comprising, feeding wrapping material from a supply in the form of a continuous web to a wrapping position, perforating said web at spaced positions to provide windows therein, assembling a transparent con- .tinuous web of material wider than the window with" said wrapping material to close said windows, severingthe amembled webs at a predetermined position between windows, and enfolding an article in said wrapping material and associated transparent material at said wrapping position in predetermined relation to the window to form a wrapped package having a closed transparent window registering with a selected portion of the article.

2. The process of wrapping articles in a window wrapper formed from continuous strip material to provide a package in which the window is registered relative to the article to exhibit a predetermined portion thereof, comprising cutting windowsin predetermined spaced position in a continuous web of wrapping material, assembling a transparent continuous web of material wider than the window with said wrapping material to close said windows, uniting said transparent material to said wrapping material, feeding the assembled window wrapping material to said wrapping position with a window in predetermined relation .to said article, cutting the assembled wrapper material between windows to form separate wrappers and enfolding an article in the positioned wrapper to form a wrapped package having a closed transparent window registering with a selected portion of the article.

3. The process set forth in claim 2 in which transparent and wrapping webs are employed having fusible coatings thereon, and said uniting includes the step of heat sealing said webs together.

LESTER FERENCI. 

